People are always asking…”How can I help?”

A new way to help.....

On going.....

We have been inundated with dogs and people looking for help to keep their dogs. Unusual health issues have surfaced. Two of the dogs surrendered had undisclosed heart murmurs. Extra trips to a canine cardiologist added countless hours and expense to the organization. Our feelings are and will remain that every item that surfaces during our veterinary checks be followed through upon to ensure that transparency is always at the forefront of our adoption process.

First, let me say it appears the scope of our rescue is morphing. Whereas the pattern was bring a dog in, vet the dog, provide opportunities to meet adopters, do home checks, and place the dog…horizons have broadened.

Some economic hardships have led to owners needing one-time assistance because, for them, keeping their pet is paramount. In these cases, it has been the veterinarian who calls us and wants to work with us. We are happy to contribute to keep the dog in its home…rescue prevention is the term we use for this. In many of these cases the owners are dealing with a plethora of issues … issues that would make the dog difficult if not impossible to place. The cost of these issues could be cost prohibitive for us as a rescue, thereby making our contribution to the veterinary expense a winning situation for all.

Phone calls come in constantly…not necessarily from people looking to place their dogs but seeking advice. Questions are related to feeding, skin issues, allergies, rehabilitating various surgeries, training, choice of veterinarian, and choice of groomer. We spend countless hours talking to people every week…and we don’t mind a bit! We are so happy to help the people and their dogs!

Change in family structure, not necessarily economic hardship, has recently forced some re-homing of dogs. Our volunteers kindly go meet the dog…if the evaluation is positive and all vetting is current, we may make a placement where our volunteer deals with the home giving up the dog, working to make the experience as comfortable as possible for them. The volunteer then picks up the dog, brings the dog to the new home, not only working with the new owner to get the dog acclimated and comfortable but offering moral support around the clock until both the new owner and the dog are settled. This commitment takes an extraordinary amount of time.

Short term success is measured not only by the number of dogs and people who are helped each year but also by the quality of that help. Great pride is taken in ensuring that proper placements are made. Dogs who are placed and stay in the new home until they are old and pass is a long term measure of success complimented only by former adopters returning for another dog from the organization. As former rescue volunteers for other organizations for decades, the long term measure is indicative of true success!

Our Newfoundland Kids Program is taking shape. VariousÂÂ schools in Connecticut are now contacting us and giving out our information as a nonprofit to take part in classes requiring community service. This is an amazing first step to getting children involved…an idea that is one of the pillars of the creation of our organization. We are dealing with middle school and high school age children currently and hope to further our program through the coming years. Keeping children involved is so key! They are the rescuers of tomorrow!

So the bottom line…we know how important all of this work is. We see it in the eyes of the animals that we save…and we see it in the eyes of the people we help. We always thought that we were JUST helping the animals…we now know differently…the face of rescue is changing! People care about their pets…their four-legged family members.

Your donations are the most important part of this process…our vet bills and medication costs are the biggest challenge that we face…every dollar helps…every volunteer helps…every donated item helps…we thank you for your consideration when deciding which charity to sponsor!